Laser hybrid welding control systems and methods

ABSTRACT

Laser hybrid welding systems adapted to identify and/or fix a weld defect occurring during a laser hybrid welding process are provided. Embodiments of the laser hybrid welding system may include one or more devices that provide feedback to a controller regarding one or more weld parameters. One embodiment of the laser hybrid welding system includes sensors that are adapted to measure the weld voltage and/or amperage during the welding process and transmit the acquired data to the controller for processing. Another embodiment of the laser hybrid welding system includes a lead camera and a lag camera that film an area directly in front of the weld location and directly behind the weld location.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation Application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/807,235, entitled “Weld Defect Detection Systemsand Methods for Laser Hybrid Welding”, filed Jul. 23, 2015, which is aContinuation Application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/012,407,entitled “Weld Defect Detection Systems and Methods for Laser HybridWelding”, filed Aug. 28, 2013, which issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,095,930on Aug. 4, 2015, and which is a Continuation Application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/776,274, entitled “Weld Defect Detection Systemsand Methods for Laser Hybrid Welding”, filed May 7, 2010, which issuedas U.S. Pat. No. 8,552,337 on Oct. 8, 2013, and which is aNon-Provisional Patent Application of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 61/186,116, entitled “Gap Filling with Laser HybridWelding”, filed Jun. 11, 2009, all of which are herein incorporated byreference.

BACKGROUND

The invention relates generally to laser hybrid welding systems, and,more particularly, to controllers for laser hybrid welding systems.

Welding is a process that has become increasingly ubiquitous in variousindustries and applications. A variety of welding techniques have beendeveloped that seek to provide fast welding capabilities with adequatepenetration and gap bridegability. While laser beam welding providesspeed and deep penetration benefits, such a welding process typicallyrequires tight joint fitup for the laser beam to adequately bridge thegap between the workpieces. Arc welding processes, on the other hand,typically provide for welding more slowly than laser-beam processes, butare capable of bridging much larger gaps than laser-beams. As such, avariety of hybrid welding techniques have been developed that combinelaser-beam welding with arc welding processes, such as gas metal arcwelding (GMAW). This type of welding process typically aims a laser beamat a location where a weld joint is to be formed, and follows itclosely, typically via the same, hybrid welding torch, with a moreconventional shielded arc for additional fusion and filler metaldeposition.

While hybrid welding processes provide good bridgeability at highspeeds, such processes are often associated with drawbacks, such asintolerability of gaps in the joint. These drawbacks often reduce oreliminate the applicability of laser hybrid welding to a variety ofapplications, such as pipelines, ship building, and automotivemanufacturing. Some advances, such as beam width increasing systems,have been made to improve the gap filling associated with laser hybridwelding. However, laser hybrid welding still poses challengessurrounding gap filling since penetration cannot be adequatelycontrolled when gaps occur in the weld. Accordingly, there exists a needfor systems that address these limitations of laser hybrid welding.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

In an exemplary embodiment, a laser hybrid welding system includes asensor adapted to acquire data regarding a parameter of a laser hybridwelding operation. The laser hybrid welding system also includes acontroller communicatively coupled to the sensor and adapted to receivethe acquired data from the sensor and to determine whether the acquireddata is indicative of a welding defect. If the acquired data isindicative of a welding defect, the controller is adapted to output acontrol signal that directs the laser hybrid welding system to attemptto fix the welding defect.

In another embodiment, a controller for a laser hybrid welding systemincludes interface circuitry adapted to receive data regarding aparameter of a laser hybrid welding operation and to output one or morecontrol signals. The controller also includes a processorcommunicatively coupled to the interface circuitry and adapted toreceive the data from the interface circuitry and to process thereceived data to determine whether a weld defect has occurred. Thecontroller also includes memory coupled to the processor and adapted toreceive and store the processed data from the processor for laterretrieval.

In another embodiment, a laser hybrid welding system includes a sensoradapted to acquire data regarding a parameter of a laser hybrid weldingoperation. The laser hybrid welding system also includes a controllercommunicatively coupled to the sensor and adapted to receive theacquired data from the sensor and to determine whether the acquired datais indicative of a welding defect. If the acquired data is indicative ofa welding defect, the controller is further configured to alert anoperator of the welding defect and to log the welding defect as an errorin an associated memory.

DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood when the following detaileddescription is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in whichlike characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary welding system including a controllerfor use in a laser hybrid welding operation in accordance with aspectsof the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating exemplary components of thecontroller of FIG. 1 in accordance with aspects of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary laser hybrid welding operation includinga laser beam and a welding arc in accordance with aspects of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary weld bead that illustrates a weld without adefect in accordance with aspects of the present invention;

FIG. 5A illustrates an exemplary weld bead that includes a burn-throughdefect of the type that can be detected and corrected in accordance withaspects of the present invention;

FIG. 5B illustrates an exemplary weld bead that includes a “suck-back”defect that may be susceptible to detection and correction;

FIG. 6 is a top view of an exemplary welding operation including a welddefect that occurred when joining a first workpiece and a secondworkpiece through laser hybrid welding;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary control scheme that maybe utilized by an embodiment of a controller to record and/or repair aweld defect during a laser hybrid welding operation; and

FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary control scheme that maybe utilized by an embodiment of a controller to repair a weld defectduring a laser hybrid welding operation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As described in detail below, embodiments are provided of a laser hybridwelding system adapted to identify and/or to fix a weld defect occurringduring a laser hybrid welding process. The disclosed laser hybridsystems may be configured to detect and/or repair weld defects such asthose sometimes referred to as “burn-through”, a “suck-back”, inadequateweld reinforcement, improper alignment, cracks, incomplete penetration,and incomplete fusion. To that end, the laser hybrid welding system mayinclude one or more devices that provide feedback to a controllerregarding one or more weld parameters. For instance, in one embodiment,the laser hybrid welding system may include sensors, such as a voltagesensor and/or a current sensor that measure the weld voltage and/oramperage during the welding process and transmit the acquired data tothe controller for processing. Such parameters may provide an indicationof a weld defect that has occurred. For further example, a leadingcamera and a following camera that image an area directly in front ofthe weld location and directly behind the weld location may be provided.The controller may compare the pre-weld and post-weld images todetermine whether a weld defect has occurred. Still further, thecontroller may time stamp the acquired data and utilize such time stamps(e.g., in conjunction with a known or estimated rate of advance) tocompute the location of the detected weld defect with respect to areference (e.g., present) location. Additionally, one or more audiosensors may be employed to determine the presence and location of theweld defect. As such, embodiments of the presently disclosed laserhybrid welding systems may be capable of detecting and repairing welddefects during the welding process.

Turning now to the drawings, FIG. 1 illustrates a welding system 10 foruse in a laser hybrid welding operation. The laser hybrid weldingoperation may be any welding operation that combines features of laserbeam welding with features of arc beam welding. For example, the laserhybrid welding operation may combine laser welding with gas metal arcwelding (GMAW) processes, such as a metal inert gas (MIG) weldingprocess. Indeed, the welding system 10 of FIG. 1 may be utilized in anylaser hybrid welding operation and with any suitable joint geometry.

The welding system 10 includes a welder 12 that provides supplies, suchas welding wire, power, and so forth, to a welding operation 14 beingperformed by a robot 16. In the illustrated embodiment, the welder 12includes a gas supply 18, a power supply 20, a laser generator 22, and awire feeder 24 that supply gas through cable 26, power through cable 28,laser power through cable 30, and wire through cable 32, respectively,to a welding torch for use in the welding operation 14. It should benoted that the cables 26, 28, 30, and 32 may be combined into a singlecable 34 that couples the welder 12 to the welding torch in someembodiments.

The welder 12 also includes a user interface 34 coupled to a controller36 and interface circuitry 30. During use, an operator may input desiredweld operating parameters to the welder 12 via the user interface 26.Additionally, the user interface 26 may be utilized by the weldingsystem 10 to communicate detection of one or more weld defects to theuser as the weld progresses. For example, the user interface 26 may beconfigured to notify the operator when a burn-through, an excess weldreinforcement or a suck-back defect has occurred. In some embodiments,such defects may be determined by the presence of a first sensor 32 anda second sensor 34 that are configured to sense one or more parametersof the weld. For example, the first sensor 32 may be adapted to measurethe actual weld voltage level and the second sensor 34 may be adapted tomeasure the actual weld current level. The acquired measurements maythen be communicated back to the interface circuitry 40 in the welder 12via cables 46 and 48. The interface circuitry 40 then routes theacquired measurements to the controller 38 in the desired way. Forexample, the interface circuitry 40 may be configured to obtainmeasurement data from the sensors as the data is acquired, for rapiddetection and repair of defects. Alternatively, they may transmit suchdata to the controller 38 at predetermined periods of time (e.g., onceevery five minutes, once every ten minutes, etc.). After receiving themeasurement data, the controller 38 processes the data to determinewhether a defect has occurred and, if so, where in the weld material thedefect exists. For example, a processor located in the controller mayconvert the voltage-time data and the amperage-time data to thefrequency domain via a fast Fourier transform (FFT) and analyze theconverted data to determine the presence of a weld defect based uponknown frequencies that should occur in normal welding, and those thatcan occur that are characteristics of such defects. The controller 38may then notify the operator of the defect via the user interface 36and/or may direct the repair of such a defect.

Furthermore, the presence of one or more weld defects may be detectedvia the use of a leading camera 50 positioned in front of the weld and afollowing camera 52 positioned behind a weld as the welding operation 14proceeds in the direction indicated by arrow 54. That is, the leadingcamera 50 may be configured to record the weld from a position ahead ofthe weld and to transmit the recorded data to the interface circuitry 40via cable 56. Similarly, the following camera 52 may be configured torecord the weld from a position behind the weld and to transmit therecorded data to the interface circuitry 40 via cable 58. The controller38 may then be adapted to receive the recorded information from theinterface circuitry 40 and to process the inputs from both the leadingcamera 50 and the following camera 52. For example, the controller 38may digitally compare the images obtained before and after the weld toidentify changes that may be indicative of a defect, such as aburn-through, a suck-back, and so forth. Additionally, the controller 38may integrate the information gained from the processing of the acquireddata from the cameras 50 and 52 with the information gained from theprocessing of the data from the sensors 42 and 44. The controller 38 mayuse such information to determine the presence, location, andcharacteristics of a defect. As before, if a defect is detected, thecontroller 38 may notify the operator of the defect via the userinterface 36 and/or may direct the repair of the defect.

It should be noted that a variety of modifications may be made to thewelding system of FIG. 1 in accordance with embodiments of the presentinvention. For example, although two sensors are depicted in theillustrated embodiment, any suitable number of sensors may be employedin other embodiments. In particular, a particular defect may beindicated by a characteristic change in current but not in voltage, orvice versa. Similarly, where cameras are used, a following camera alonemay suffice to identify certain defects, such as bun-through, which mayappear as a spot in a following image where no such spot should normallyoccur. Additionally, it should be noted that as used herein, the term“camera” refers to any suitable device for viewing the weld joint. Forexample, the camera may be any optical device, any laser scanningdevice, or any ultrasonic device configured to view the weld jointand/or any defects present in the weld joint.

Furthermore, although the welding system of FIG. 1 depicts a manualwelding operation, embodiments of the present invention may be utilizedwith automatic welding operations that rely on one or more robots tocarry out the welding operation. In such cases, the system may beconfigured to automatically alter welding (e.g., back up to the locationof a defect) to perform a repair, where possible. Still further, thewelder 12 may include additional system components not shown, such asmemory, additional electrical circuitry, and so forth. Indeed, thedisclosed systems and methods may be utilized with any laser hybridwelding system. For example, the disclosed embodiments may be utilizedin applications that combine GMAW processes, such as metal inert gas(MIG) processes, with laser beam welding and/or applications thatcombine laser beam welding with plasma arc welding. Finally, certainembodiments may benefit from the detection of defects alone, such aswith time or location stamps, all of which may be recordedelectronically, such that subsequent operations may be performed toevaluate whether a defect has actually occurred and whether remedialactions are advisable to repair the defect, where possible.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram 60 illustrating exemplary components of thecontroller 38 of FIG. 1. In the illustrated embodiment, the controller38 includes a processor 62, interface circuitry 64, control circuitry66, a clock 68, and memory 70. During operation, the interface circuitry64 may receive data from one or more devices (e.g., sensors, cameras,etc.) regarding a weld feedback parameter. The interface circuitry 64communicates such data to the processor 62 where the data is compiledand processed. The processor 62 may store a portion of the data to thememory 70 for later retrieval. The processor 62 may also utilize theclock 68 to time stamp the received data and to determine a location ofthe detected defect. Furthermore, the processor 62 may be adapted tooutput a signal to the control circuitry 66 that directs the repair ofthe defect. The control circuitry 66 may then output a control signalvia the interface circuitry 64 that directs the repair of the defect.

Still further, during use, the processor 62 may be configured tocommunicate the identification of a defect to the operator via the userinterface 36 in the welder 12. That is, after receiving and processingthe one or more data inputs from the interface circuitry 64, theprocessor 62 may output a signal that directs the user interface 36 tocommunicate to the operator the presence of a weld defect and theactions taken to fix the defect. If the data inputs indicate that noweld defect has occurred, the processor 62 may be configured to output asignal to the user interface 36 directing the interface to notify theoperator that the welding operation is proceeding without any errors. Itshould be noted that such communications may take any suitable form. Forexample, a visual or audible alarm may be generated that the operatorcan easily detect and identify as such. It is also contemplated thatsome operators may use specialized equipment such as helmets withoperator feedback or communication (e.g., LED's visible in the helmet,head-up displays, headphones, etc.). The notification of the occurrenceof a defect, and even a time or location indication, can be provided bysuch means.

FIG. 3 is a schematic of an exemplary laser-hybrid welding operation 72that the controller 38 of FIG. 2 may control. The welding operation 72includes a welding torch 74 that advances an electrode 76 toward thelocation of the weld, thus generating a welding arc 80. Concurrently, alaser beam 82 is also directed toward the location 78 of the weld. Asthe weld proceeds in a direction indicated by arrow 84, the laser beam82 and the welding arc 80 cooperate to form the desired weld in a fusionzone 86. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the laser beam 82 penetrates theweld material directly in front of the welding arc 80 from the electrode76. As such, as the laser beam 82 adds light energy to the weld, a tightkeyhole is provided for the welding arc 80 to enter. Additionally, theinclusion of the laser beam 82 into the welding operation 72 maystabilize the welding arc 80 as compared to welding operations thatfunction without the laser beam 82. Additionally, the laser beam 82 mayfacilitate a desirable welding speed, enabling the weld to be completedat a higher speed compared to non-laser beam enhanced welds.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary transverse section of a weld produced bya laser hybrid welding system without a defect in accordance withaspects of the present invention. As shown, a first workpiece 90 and asecond workpiece 92 are joined along a weld joint. The illustratedembodiment shows a weld bead 96 as formed during a laser hybrid weldingoperation. The weld bead may include a root portion and multiple weldpasses that complete the weld bead 96 without the presence of anydefects.

FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate exemplary transverse sections of possibleweld defects that may be detected and/or repaired by embodiments of thepresent invention. Specifically, FIG. 5A illustrates a weld bead 102that includes a burn through defect 104. That is, when the firstworkpiece 90 and the second workpiece 92 joined together, excess heatmay have caused excess weld metal to penetrate through the location ofthe weld. That is, excess penetration may have occurred in theillustrated weld bead 102 due to factors such as excess wire feed speed,excessively slow travel speed, and so forth. As discussed in detailbelow, embodiments of the present invention may allow for detection ofburn-through weld beads via a variety of mechanisms, such as evaluatingvoltage or amperage feedback, utilizing leading and following cameras toimage the weld, and so forth.

FIG. 5B illustrates a weld bead 106 that includes a suck-back defect108. As illustrated, the suck-back weld bead 106 includes weld metalthat has contracted back into a root 110 of the weld bead 106 aftercooling. Such suck-back defects may occur due to excessive weld puddletemperatures. As before, such a defect may be automatically detected viaweld imaging, sensor placement, and so forth during the weldingoperation. That is, embodiments of the present invention may includedetection and repair of such a defect.

It should be noted that the controller may be configured to process oneor more acquired measurements, utilize such measurements to identify adefect, and alter one or more parameters of the welding process toensure that future defects do not occur. For example, in one embodiment,the weld voltage and weld current may be sensed and recorded over timeduring the welding process. Such data may then be transferred into thefrequency domain via a FFT to identify the presence of one or moredefects. The presence of a defect may trigger generation of an errorsignal corresponding to an item in a lookup table or a neural network.The controller may use the item to direct a setting of the welder and/orthe laser that will alter the correct parameter to fix the detecteddefect. Indeed, a variety of such procedures may be utilized by thecontroller to detect and fix the weld defect.

FIG. 6 is a top view of a welding operation progressing in the directionof arrow 118 to join the first workpiece 90 and the second workpiece 92.As shown, as time progresses from a first time 120 to a second time 122to a third time 124, the weld is completed and the first workpiece 90and the second workpiece 92 are joined. However, at the second time 122,a weld defect 126 occurs. The weld defect 126 may be any of a variety ofpossible weld defects, such as a burn-through, a suck-back, excess weldreinforcement, inadequate weld reinforcement, improper alignment, acrack, incomplete penetration, incomplete fusion, undercut, and soforth. Indeed, the weld defect 126 represents any weld defect that mayoccur at the second time 122, particularly of a type that can bedetected during the progression of a weld or shortly thereafter.

Embodiments of the presently disclosed control system are configured toprocess data from one or more sensors and/or cameras at the weldlocation regarding characteristics of the weld. In this way, suchembodiments of the control system may be capable of identifying thepresence, nature, and location of the weld defect 126. For example, thecontrol system may time stamp the acquired data and integrate the timestamped data with the torch travel speed to determine the location ofthe defect. Additionally, if the travel speed changes over time alongthe length of the workpieces, the controller may be configured tointegrate the varying travel speed with the time stamped data todetermine the position of the weld defect 126.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart 128 illustrating an exemplary control scheme thatmay be utilized by an embodiment of the controller. Once the weldingsystem has been activated and a welding operation has begun, thecontroller senses a feedback parameter (block 130). This feedbackparameter may be a weld voltage level, a weld current level, data from aleading camera, data from a following camera, and so forth, or anycombination of these. The controller processes the feedback parameter tocheck whether the feedback parameter indicates the presence of a welddefect (block 132). This will typically involve comparison of thefeedback data, or data derived from the feedback data, to known “goodweld” characteristics and/or to known defect signatures. For example,certain of the defects may manifest themselves as rapid changes incurrent and/or voltage, or in a frequency spike in current and/orvoltage that can be identified by analysis of the feedback signals inthe frequency domain. Similarly, camera feedback may be compared toknown appearances of good welds and defects, such as by analysis ofbrightness, contrast or other characteristics of pixilated data from oneor more cameras.

If the feedback parameter does not indicate a weld defect, thecontroller outputs a control signal that guides the continuation of thewelding process (i.e., does not interrupt) with the laser and the welder(block 134). If the feedback parameter does indicate a defect, thecontroller records the error, assigns the error an error ID (block 136),time stamps the error, and computes the defect location (block 138). Itshould be noted that the controller may utilize an encoder and/or one ormore wireless signals to determine and/or communicate the defectlocation. The controller may then notify the operator of the error(block 140), for example, through the user interface on the controlpanel of the welder, or via the welder's equipment (e.g., helmet). Ifdesired, the controller may then output a control signal that directsthe welder to attempt to fix the defect (block 142). For example, thecontroller may direct the positioner or robot to back up and re-weld thearea including a gap in the weld if desired. In other embodiments,however, the controller may notify the operator that an error hasoccurred at the determined location without attempting to repair theweld defect. Still further, the controller may be configured to log allthe detected errors throughout a welding operation and provide theoperator with a list of detected errors and the locations of the errors.In some embodiments, the welding system may finish the weld and proceedto back up automatically right after the weld is completed. In otherembodiments, the welding system may complete the weld and allow a presetor manually set time interval to elapse before backing up to fix thedefect.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart 144 illustrating an exemplary control scheme thatmay be utilized by an embodiment of the controller to fix one or moregap defects in a weld bead. As before, such a control scheme would beemployed after activation of the welding system and initiation of awelding operation. The controller first directs the sensing of afeedback parameter (block 130) and then processes the feedback parameterto check whether the feedback parameter indicates the presence of a welddefect (block 132). If the feedback parameter does not indicate a welddefect, the controller outputs a control signal that guides thecontinuation (or simply does not interrupt) of the welding process withthe laser and the welder (block 134). If the feedback parameter doesindicate a defect, the controller checks whether the size of the defectexceeds a preset threshold (block 146). That is, the controller checkswhether a large burn-through is detected, which indicates the presenceof a large gap. If the size of the defect does exceed the threshold, thecontroller outputs a control signal that directs the laser to turn offand the arc welder to remain on to fill the gap (block 148). In otherwords, in the presence of a large gap, the controller directs thewelding system to employ conventional welding without the laser torepair the gap. After filling the gap, the laser and the welder areactivated to continue welding (block 134).

If the size of the defect does not exceed the threshold, the controllerdirects the laser and the welder to turn off (block 150). The positioneror robot performing the welding is then backed up to the startinglocation of the defect (block 152) where the laser and the arc welderare turned back on (block 154). The laser hybrid welder is then directedby the controller to run another pass over the location of the defect(block 156). That is, if the detected gap is small, the laser hybridwelding operation may be interrupted to attempt to repair the gap. Afterrepair has been attempted, the feedback parameter is re-sensed (block158). The controller again checks whether the re-sensed feedbackparameter indicates the presence of a defect (block 132). If thefeedback indicates the defect has been repaired, the laser-welder isdirected to continue welding with the laser and the welder (block 134).Alternatively, if the feedback parameter indicates the presence of adefect, the controller again attempts to fix the defect by repeatingblocks 150, 152, 154, 156, and 158 (block 160). After repeating suchblocks, the controller again checks if the feedback parameter indicatesa defect (block 132). If no defect is detected, the controller directsthe welder to weld as normal (block 134). If a defect is still detected,the controller notifies the operator of an error (block 162). Thecontroller may then either terminate the welding operation and wait foroperator input or continue welding while noting the location of thedefect.

It should be noted that the method illustrated in FIG. 8 is an exemplarymethod that may be utilized to repair one or more weld defects duringthe welding process. However, in some embodiments, modifications to theillustrated method may be employed. For example, the controller may beconfigured to determine, based on feedback received, the length andduration of the weld defect and, based on the determined parameters ofthe defect, determine whether to stop the welding process to fix thedefect when detected or to finish the weld before attempting to fix thedefect. For further example, if the length of the defect exceeds apreset length, the controller may direct a stop and restart in thewelding process to fix the defect. However, if the length of the defectis small compared to a preset threshold, the controller may allow theweld to be completed before attempting to fix the defect. Still further,in some embodiments, it may be advantageous to complete the weld beforestopping and restarting to address one or more weld defects.

While only certain features of the invention have been illustrated anddescribed herein, many modifications and changes will occur to thoseskilled in the art. It is, therefore, to be understood that the appendedclaims are intended to cover all such modifications and changes as fallwithin the true spirit of the invention.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A laser hybrid welding system, comprising:a welder configured to perform a laser hybrid welding operation in whicha workpiece is heated by a laser and filler metal is added by an arcwelding process; a sensor configured to acquire data regarding aparameter of the laser hybrid welding operation; and a controllercommunicatively coupled to the sensor, wherein the controller isconfigured to receive the acquired data from the sensor, and to outputone or more control signals to control a laser parameter and a weldparameter of the laser hybrid welding operation based at least in parton the acquired data.
 2. The laser hybrid welding system of claim 1,wherein the one or more control signals are configured to alternatebetween control of the laser parameter and control of the weldparameter.
 3. The laser hybrid welding system of claim 1, wherein thesensor comprises a voltage sensor.
 4. The laser hybrid welding system ofclaim 1, wherein the sensor comprises a current sensor.
 5. The laserhybrid welding system of claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises an audiosensor.
 6. The laser hybrid welding system of claim 1, wherein thesensor comprises a leading camera.
 7. The laser hybrid welding system ofclaim 1, wherein the sensor comprises a following camera.
 8. The laserhybrid welding system of claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises an Imagmgsensor.
 9. The laser hybrid welding system of claim 8, wherein theimaging sensor comprises a leading camera configured to record a firstimage of a pre-weld area and a following camera configured to record asecond image of a post-weld area.
 10. The laser hybrid welding system ofclaim 1, wherein the sensor comprises a laser scanning device.
 11. Thelaser hybrid welding system of claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises anultrasonic device.
 12. A laser hybrid welding system, comprising: awelder configured to perform a laser hybrid welding operation m which aworkpiece is heated by a laser and filler metal is added by an arcwelding process; a sensor configured to acquire data regarding aparameter of the laser hybrid welding operation; and a controllercommunicatively coupled to the sensor, wherein the controller isconfigured to receive the acquired data from the sensor, and to outputone or more control signals to alternate between control of a laserparameter of the laser hybrid welding operation and control of a weldparameter of the laser hybrid welding operation based at least in parton the acquired data.
 13. The laser hybrid welding system of claim 12,wherein the sensor comprises a voltage sensor.
 14. The laser hybridwelding system of claim 12, wherein the sensor comprises a currentsensor.
 15. The laser hybrid welding system of claim 12, wherein thesensor comprises an audio sensor.
 16. The laser hybrid welding system ofclaim 12, wherein the sensor comprises a leading camera.
 17. The laserhybrid welding system of claim 12, wherein the sensor comprises afollowing camera.
 18. The laser hybrid welding system of claim 12,wherein the sensor compnses an Imagmg sensor.
 19. The laser hybridwelding system of claim 18, wherein the imaging sensor comprises aleading camera configured to record a first image of a pre-weld area anda following camera configured to record a second image of a post-weldarea.
 20. The laser hybrid welding system of claim 12, wherein thesensor comprises a laser scanning device.
 21. The laser hybrid weldingsystem of claim 12, wherein the sensor comprises an ultrasonic device.